NORTHAMPTON, Pa. — Patrick Roach, who plays the shirtless, drunken, cheeseburger-chomping Randy BoBandy on the comedy TV series "Trailer Park Boys," says he knows why the series has been a hit for so long.
“It's a bunch of characters who have the same hard times," Roach said in a phone call from his Canadian home to promote his appearance at 8:15 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 2, at The Gin Mill and Grille in Northampton.
Tickets, at $25 each and $150 for VIP that includes a hangout session with Randy, a question-and-answer period, item signing, photo session and personalized tour poster and more, are availableon the TicketWeb site.
"It's a true sense of commitment and friendship. They love one another and will do anything for each other. It's a lot of shenanigans, but a lot of love. That’s what the world needs.""Trailer Park Boys" actor Patrick Roach
"It's a true sense of commitment and friendship," Roach said. "They love one another and will do anything for each other.
"It's a lot of shenanigans, but a lot of love. That’s what the world needs."
That may be a deeper explanation than expected for a show that has those characters absurdly resort to petty crimes.
But there's no arguing that "Trailer Park Boys" has been a success since it debuted on Canadian TV in 2001 and moved to Netflix a decade ago.
Not only does the series continue to attract viewers four years after its final original episode ran, but it has expanded to spinoff shows such as "Trailer Park Boys: Jail" and "Trailer Park Boys: The Animated Series" and Christmas specials.
And a new “Trailer Park Boys” movie, “Trailer Park Boys: Standing on the Shoulders of Kitties,” is coming to theaters Dec. 6.
“The best fans in the world are ‘Trailer Park Boys’ fans,” Roach said.
'It's fierce'
Roach's show at The Gin Mill and Grille will be part of his Randy Cheeseburger Tour — which he describes by telling his prospective audience, "You're in for a night."
“I'll tell some jokes, sing some songs, play cheeseburger games," he said. “A good laugh and you get to see Randy Bobandy. … It's fierce."
Also, expect there to be cheeseburgers.
"It's never too late in the year for cheeseburgers," he said.
"You can stream it wherever you want. And I know people who watch it every day."Actor Patrick Roach, talking about the Netflix series "Trailer Park Boys"
On "Trailer Park Boys," the character Randy — always shirtless, and known for his protruding gut and addiction to cheeseburgers — was one of the main protagonists, the assistant/lover of drunken Superintendent Mr. Lahey at Sunnyvale Trailer Park in Nova Scotia, Canada.
The “mockumentary” revolved around their interaction with trailer park residents Ricky, Julian and Bubbles, who try to make money through petty crimes while avoiding the police.
It originally ran for eight seasons on the Canadian cable network Showcase, where it was the network’s highest-rated series.
It began running on Netflix in 2014 and continued production through 2018.
But Roach said the show found a new audience during COVID-19 lockdowns, and now can be seen on Netflix in "hundreds of countries around the world."
"You can stream it wherever you want," he said. "And I know people who watch it every day."
A 'Trailer Park Boys' movie
Roach said the upcoming movie focuses on another popular "Trailer Park Boys" character, the thick-glasses-wearing Bubbles, and his forming his own rock band.
"He looks up to Alex Lifeson and Rush,” Roach said with a laugh, and the film has him and the band — which has an off-color name — impressing enough people to be able to tour Europe with actor Billy Bob Thornton's band The Boxmasters.
The film also has an appearance by Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood.
Randy is enlisted as a roadie for Bubbles' band — with the expected disastrous results.
Roach said the movie was filmed last year and was “very, very exciting to do.”
But it's hardly the only project on Roach's plate.
Other projects
Lately, Roach worked on the Pat Roach Official YouTube channel, on which many episodes are dedicated to one of his biggest hobbies, fishing.
Road said it was his wife who persuaded him that people would be interested in his fishing. He said he put up content for five to six weeks and doubled his following.
“There may be more. There’s only so much time to do things."Actor Patrick Roach
He said he even was invited to a huge Bass convention in Canada.
“Things are happening out there in the angling world,” he said.
He said he now also has 100,000 followers on Instagram.
Roach also had success with "The Roach Approach," another TV series in which he starred that, while not playing Randy BoBandy, shared is characteristics as he guided watchers through various situations.
"The character is a little crass, but the fans love 'The Roach Approach,'” he said. The show ran 130 episodes but now is on hiatus.
“There may be more," Roach said with a chuckle. "There’s only so much time to do things. 'The Roach Approach' is every day, and you only have so many hours."
